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Old 03-30-2022, 02:47 AM   #1
RickV
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Macerator pump

I have finally decided to get a macerator pump. I decided on this for two reasons when we are home it is just over 100' to the septic clean out from the pole barn and when we head out for the Summer in May a few of the places we will be staying at are water/power only. I had thought about putting in the two 55 gallon drum system near the pole barn but the macerator will be a lot cheaper and easier escpecially for as much as we'll use it. Last week when we got home from our Reunion Event I had to dump the black tank into the 40 gallon tote and drag that heavy thing across the yard it wasn't fun, that's what got me thinking about getting the macerator. Also when we are on the road I can keep the big blue 40 gallonier in the truck and pump to it and drive to the dump station if necessary. I ordered a 100' lay flat hose and camlocks to make my connections. I have a couple of questions. Can I use a regular rv sewer hose connected to the sewer drain on the 5ver and then connect the macerator to it to gain a few extra feet closer to the clean out? Is there a thicker heavy duty cap that has the locking tabs to connect to the Bayonet Elbow Fitting, I want to drill a 1" hole in it and put a 1" female camlock in it so I have a sealed system when dumping.
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Old 03-30-2022, 04:13 AM   #2
flybouy
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I used a macerator on our previous trailer almost excusivly because it set close to the ground. Yes, you can connect a standard sewer hose between it and the dump outlet on the trailer. As far as fittings go they are pretty much the same as far as aftermarket elbows, and extensions. Your macerator pump should be just as "sealed" as your sewer hose. If it isn't then replace the "O" ring in the pump. There are cam lock conversions for waste hoses if you choose to go that route but I wouldn't recomment trying to drill a large hole in a round pipe with such thin plastic walls.
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Old 03-30-2022, 09:24 AM   #3
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One more question, I have two sewer outlets one is black/grey and the other is just grey from the galley. The black/grey is on the backside of the 5ver past the rear wheels on the opposite side of where my batteries are in the front box, it is along run to the back sewer outlet so I am thinking of getting a AC to DC inverter and just running an extension cord from one of the outside 120 volt outlets to the inverter. The pump calls for at least 15 DC amps what size AC to DC Inverter do I need? From what I can find I am thinking 1800 watts.
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Old 03-30-2022, 09:46 AM   #4
flybouy
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One more question, I have two sewer outlets one is black/grey and the other is just grey from the galley. The black/grey is on the backside of the 5ver past the rear wheels on the opposite side of where my batteries are in the front box, it is along run to the back sewer outlet so I am thinking of getting a AC to DC inverter and just running an extension cord from one of the outside 120 volt outlets to the inverter. The pump calls for at least 15 DC amps what size AC to DC Inverter do I need? From what I can find I am thinking 1800 watts.
The biggest issue will be with the startup amps on the motor. Depending on the inverter it may trip before getting the motor to run. I installed the wiring to our previous trailer as well as this trailer and on both used existing wire to tap into. With both trailers I ran 8 guage from the main distribution panel across the bottom of the trailer to the sewer outlet. On both it was basically a straight shot and using 8 guage wire was overkill 10 would have been sufficiant.
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Old 05-25-2022, 04:25 PM   #5
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I'm back with another macerator question. The campground we are at for the next 9 days isn't FH they only have water and power, there is a dump station. I have my 40 gallon tote strapped to my hitch in the back of the truck. I would like to use the macerator pump to pump grey water to the tank while it is still in the back of the truck then going to the dump station and dumping from there. I know the pump will pump it no problem but, once the grey tank is empty will the water in the hose start following back through the pump into the drain pipe on the 5ver because it is a couple of feet higher? The black tank shouldn't be an issue and can be dumped when we leave.
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Old 05-25-2022, 08:18 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by RickV View Post
One more question, I have two sewer outlets one is black/grey and the other is just grey from the galley. The black/grey is on the backside of the 5ver past the rear wheels on the opposite side of where my batteries are in the front box, it is along run to the back sewer outlet so I am thinking of getting a AC to DC inverter and just running an extension cord from one of the outside 120 volt outlets to the inverter. The pump calls for at least 15 DC amps what size AC to DC Inverter do I need? From what I can find I am thinking 1800 watts.
AC to DC would not be an inverter but would be a converter. Converter makes DC from AC. An inverter makes AC from DC.
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Old 05-26-2022, 02:25 AM   #7
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AC to DC would not be an inverter but would be a converter. Converter makes DC from AC. An inverter makes AC from DC.
I just wired it directly to the where the 12v DC power goes into the Bedroom slideout controller is, works great.
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Old 05-26-2022, 10:28 AM   #8
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If the pump is a centrifugal type, and i assume it is, yes, the water can flow back when the pump is off. A flapper type check valve like used on basement sump pumps would stop any backflow, but could leak if any debris gets between the flapper and seat.
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Old 05-26-2022, 12:21 PM   #9
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There's no check valve and I would not recommend installing one. If you are concerned then add a ball valve close enough to the pump to allow acess for clearing it WHEN it clogs. From my experience using the pump on a previous trailer, go to HF and by a set of their long tweezers. The pump will have hair wind around the impeller and the long tweezers make the job of clearing it easier.
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Old 05-27-2022, 02:57 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by flybouy View Post
There's no check valve and I would not recommend installing one. If you are concerned then add a ball valve close enough to the pump to allow acess for clearing it WHEN it clogs. From my experience using the pump on a previous trailer, go to HF and by a set of their long tweezers. The pump will have hair wind around the impeller and the long tweezers make the job of clearing it easier.
Yesterday while we were out I picked up a ball valve.
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Old 05-27-2022, 04:55 AM   #11
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I was looking at your pics on a larger screen and noticed you used what appears to be 1" i.d. hose and have it clamped to the pump. That outlet should be threaded for a standard garden hose. If you are pumping uphill at much of an elevation bigger isn't necessarily better, especiallyat long distances.

Increasing the volume of the hose increases the weight of the water the pump has to move, in other words it increases the head pressure. The pump will have to work harder (drawing higher amperage) to move the water the same distance at a greater volume. There are calculators on-line if you want to see the difference in volume just Google "volume of a cylinder calculator".

On our previous trailer I used the macerator nearly every time I dumped. The trailer sat very low and even at some dump stations I needed to pump it vs dump it. I kept a set of hoses (just for the macerator obviously) that consisted of one 15' hose and two 25' hoses. I bought gray colored Never Kink red stripe hoses. I use the same hoses in white for the fresh water and they have been well worth the investment IMO. They are going on year 15 of use and still look and perform like new.

Just my experience, YMMV.
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Old 05-27-2022, 07:34 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by flybouy View Post
I was looking at your pics on a larger screen and noticed you used what appears to be 1" i.d. hose and have it clamped to the pump. That outlet should be threaded for a standard garden hose. If you are pumping uphill at much of an elevation bigger isn't necessarily better, especiallyat long distances.

Increasing the volume of the hose increases the weight of the water the pump has to move, in other words it increases the head pressure. The pump will have to work harder (drawing higher amperage) to move the water the same distance at a greater volume. There are calculators on-line if you want to see the difference in volume just Google "volume of a cylinder calculator".

On our previous trailer I used the macerator nearly every time I dumped. The trailer sat very low and even at some dump stations I needed to pump it vs dump it. I kept a set of hoses (just for the macerator obviously) that consisted of one 15' hose and two 25' hoses. I bought gray colored Never Kink red stripe hoses. I use the same hoses in white for the fresh water and they have been well worth the investment IMO. They are going on year 15 of use and still look and perform like new.

Just my experience, YMMV.
I have it setup both ways if I am not lifting I can use the 1" and when using it like I am now to pump it to the bed of the truck I have it setup for 3/4" hose. The original picture didn't show it. We actually did the transfer to truck about 2 hours ago worked pretty good for the first time trying it. I did put a ball valve inline so once I shut off the pump it wouldn't siphon back. You were right about hair, there was some around the center of the cutter I used some needle nose pliers to get it out will pick up some long tweezers.
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Old 05-27-2022, 08:39 AM   #13
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If you have a long reach needle nose pliers they work well. The long tweezers I like because they give me more control. I don't like using tools on things with fecal matter and chance using them on say a water pump later. I know I'm anal about water quality and cross contamination but it comes from experience. I got hepatitis A from a resturant in Denver about 20 years and it damned near killed me, literally. Working in the resturant industry for decades I've seen some things that I can't forget.

When I was using mine I always used the flush connection. After closing off the dump valve I'd flush the pump with clear water to flush out the hose. Doing so will also help mitigate any issue with spillage. There's always going to be some residual water spill out when disconnecting so having "clean" water is better to spill than "dirty" water.
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Old 05-29-2022, 02:33 AM   #14
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Originally Posted by flybouy View Post
If you have a long reach needle nose pliers they work well. The long tweezers I like because they give me more control. I don't like using tools on things with fecal matter and chance using them on say a water pump later. I know I'm anal about water quality and cross contamination but it comes from experience. I got hepatitis A from a resturant in Denver about 20 years and it damned near killed me, literally. Working in the resturant industry for decades I've seen some things that I can't forget.

When I was using mine I always used the flush connection. After closing off the dump valve I'd flush the pump with clear water to flush out the hose. Doing so will also help mitigate any issue with spillage. There's always going to be some residual water spill out when disconnecting so having "clean" water is better to spill than "dirty" water.
Did the same thing for the same reason the other day.
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Old 02-20-2023, 03:29 PM   #15
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MACERATOR PUMP recommendations question

We are in the market for a macerator, looking at Amazon I see several choices, Latch.It, RecPro, Sprance, and more. Does anyone have any preferences or recommendations?
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Old 02-21-2023, 02:28 AM   #16
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We are in the market for a macerator, looking at Amazon I see several choices, Latch.It, RecPro, Sprance, and more. Does anyone have any preferences or recommendations?
This is the one I use it seems to do a good job. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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